Dispensing device



June 9, 1959 M J. BELMONTE 2,889,951

' DISPENSING DEVICE Filed Feb. '7, 1957 I 2 Sheets-Sheet l ImIIH' INVENTOR Mlchael J Behnon'l'e A'I'I'ORNEY5 United States Patent i 2,889,961 DISPENSING DEVICE a Michael J. Belmonte, East Haven, Conn. Application February 7, 1957, Serial No. 638,802 Claims. 01. 221-175 1 This invention relates to an article dispenser and relates more particularlyto dispensers which, while not limited thereto, are particularly useful for placing markersin proper locations on a game board or the like. The dispenser is, admirably suited for dispensing small disks or markers employed in playing bingo. A bingo player oftenplays a number of cards, each card having on its fa ce twenty-four numbered squares. As numbers are called, the player places a marker in each square corresppnding to the number called. Frequently the player fallsbehind the caller, unless the player has a convenient and adequate supply of markers and has great dexterity. I am awarethat dispensers for game markers have been devised heretofore. However, the dispensers known to me have-been open to certain. objections. These dispensers are diificult to load; sometimes fail to operate at all, or dispense more than one marker at a time; require-an undue and fatiguing amountof finger pressure on the part of the player to operate them; and obscure from the players view the square on which. the marker is to be placed as the dispenser is moved to the dispensing position over the square. My invention contemplates the provision of an article dispenser which has none of the aforementioned drawbacks.

Accordingly, one object of the invention is to provide an improved article dispenser especially useful for dispensing game markers. 7 p ;';Another object of the invention is to provide a dispens'er which is easily loaded and which is easily manip ulated to dispense markers.

Another object of the invention is to provide a dispenser which is very reliable in use and which is of simple and economical construction.

- Further objects will be apparent from the following detailed description of the form of the invention illustrated in the drawings .by way of example.

In the drawings: v Fig. l is a perspective view of a dispenser embodying the invention, the dispenser being shown in association with a game board or the like;

Fig. 2is a top planvie'wof the dispenser;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken on line 3-3 of- Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 'is a sectionalviewtaken on line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is 'an enlarged fragmentary view partially in sec-' tionillustrating the dispensing point of the dispenser, the point being shown in position to dispense a marker;

, Fig.6 is anenlarged sectional view taken on line 6-6 f F 'Fig, 7 is a 'view' similar to Fig. 6 but illustrating the parts of thedispenser in difierent relative positions; and

Fig.8 isa sectional view taken on line 8-8 of Fig. 5. a the drawings, the hopper body of the dispenser is indicated at 10. The hopper body, which may be generally oval in plan, is provided with a bottom 11, an upwardly extending side wall'structure 12, a flat top 13, upwardly extending annular flange 13 defining a rather large. opening in the. top, and a removable cover 14 having a press fit with the flange 13. The dispenser of the invention may be conveniently formed in its entirety of transparent or semi-transparent plastic material, and at one side of the hopper body 10 there is provided a slideway 15 which, in the illustrated form, extends a considerable distance from the hopper body, perhaps six inches. The slideway 15, which is of flattened tubular form, communicates with the hopper body and the bottom of the slideway 15 is substantially flush with the bottom 11 of the body. The slideway 15 forms, in effect, a straight extension of the bottom 11. The dispenser is provided with a reinforcement, as at 16, at the junction of the slideway 15 with the body 10. To further reinforce the dispenser at the junction of the slideway 15 with the body 10, there is provided on the top of the slideway 15 a vertically arranged web 17 fixed to the slideway 15 and the side wall structure 12 of the body. The web 17 extends from the body 10 to a point a short distance beyond the distal end of the slideway 15. The bottom edge of the web 17 is recessed longitudinally, as at 18, to form a projecting end or fixed finger 19 spaced above and extending longitudinally of the slideway 15, the finger 19 extending outwardly over the distal end portion of the slideway 15.

Formed on the upper surface of the bottom 11 of the body at one side of the longitudinal median plane of the slideway 15 are ribs or partitions 20-23, each of said ribs forming with one another or the side wall structure 12 of the body a way extending in the direction of said plane and inclined toward the throat of the slideway 15. As best shown in Fig. 4, these ways extend parallel to one another. Formed on the upper side of the bottom 11 of the body at the other side of said plane are ribs or partitions 24-26, these ribs being in staggered relation to the ribs 20-23, as best shown in Fig. 4. Also extending upwardly from the bottom 11 is a projection 27 having a straight side edge 27 spaced from and parallel to the rib 24 to form with the latter a way extending toward the throat of the slideway 15. The projection 27 is also provided with a side edge 27* which, in the illustrated form, is a straight edge forming with the edge 27 an obtuse angle, the edge 27 serving as an abutment (which will appear hereinafter) and being substantially flush with the corresponding side of the throat of the slideway 15, as shown in Fig. 4. The way formed by the projection 27 and the rib 24 is inclined with respect to the longitudinal median plane of the slideway 15, as illustrated in Fig. 4, and the last-mentioned way is parallel to a way formed by the rib 24 and the rib 25, a way formed by the rib 25 and the rib 26, and a way formed by the rib 26 and the side wall structure 12 of the body. The ways formed at the last-mentioned side of the longitudinal median plane of the slideway 15 are in staggered relation to the ways formed at the other side of said plane, as shown in Fig. 4. Spaced upwardly from the bottom of the ways by the ribs 20-26 and the projection 27 is a plate 28 extending in substantially parallel relation to the bottom 11. The plate 28, which is of the form shown in Fig. 4, is fixed to the ribs 20-26 and the projection 27. The plate 28' extends from the throat of the slideway 15 to the opposite side of the hopper body 10 and covers only the inner ends of said Ways, the ends closest to the longitudinal median plane of the slideway 15. The plate 28 is spaced upwardly from the bottoms of the ways a distance only slightly in excess of the thickness of a single marker so that the markers may not slide under the plate 28 in piggyback relation to one another. The markers, which are formed as small disks, are indicated at 29. The markers 29, when placed in the hopper body 10 in random fashion will, when the dispenser is agitated by shaking the same in the hand of the player, drop into said ways in all regions except their.

ass gn inner end regions. The inner ends of the ways at one side of said median plane are spaced from the inner ends of the other ways to form a central passageway (-Fig. 4') for the markers 29 leading to the throat of the slideway 15, and the ways at one sideof said median plane are in staggered relation to the other ways so that 'jamming of the markers 29 in said passageway isinhibited. From the foregoing it will be understood that the ribs 2026, the projection 27 and the plate- 28 form with the bottom and side wall structure 12 of the hopper body a hopper construction which, while facilitating a flow of markers to the throat of the slideway 15, inhibits jamming; of the disks at the throat. In this connection it may be noted that the edge 27 of the projection 27- forms an abutment for markers 2-9 sliding toward the throat of the slideway 15 in the way formed by the rib 20 and the side wall structure 12 of the body, said abutment tending to prevent markers in the last-mentioned way from sliding past the throat of the slideway, as indicated in Fig. 4. Of course it will be understood that the markers 29- move by gravity toward the throat of the slideway 15 when the dispenser-is tipped in the hand of the player, as indicated in Fig. 1. When the dispenser is held in the hand in this manner and gently agitated from side to side markers 29 on the upper surface of the plate 28 tend to slide off the last-mentioned plate to one side or the other and drop into the ways formed on the upper surface of the bottom 11. The hopper body may be loaded by first removing the cover 14 and then dropping a handful or two of the markers into the hopper body at random. The cover 14 may then be replaced.

As shown in Fig. 4, the slideway 15 provides a passage for the game markers 29 which passage is only slightly in excess of the diameter of a single marker so that the markers follow one behind another when the dispenser is tipped in the manner illustrated in Fig. 1. As best shown in Fig. 8, there is provided at the distal end of, the slideway 15 a tongue 30 extending longitudinally of the bottom of the slideway 15, the tongue 30 being somewhat narrower than the bottom of the slideway 15 and having at the outer extremity thereof an upwardly extending flange 31. The flange 31 is of a height approximating that of the side walls of the slideway 15. Rearwardl'y or inwardly from the tongue 30 the top of the slideway 15 is cut away and is provided with a downwardly sloped surface 32 (Fig. 8), the surface 32 forming the outer extremity of the top of the slideway 15. The surface 32 is recessed, as at 32 opposite the flange 31 which has a corresponding curvature (see Fig. 8) so that the outermost marker may be discharged from the slideway 15 with clearance in an upward direction. The outer extremities of the sides of the slideway 15 are sloped, as at 33. As shown in- Fig; 8, the bottom of the slideway 15 extends beyond the sloped surface 32. The tongue 30 forms, in effect, a narrow extension of the bottom of the slideway 15, and the upwardly extending flange 31 at the outer extremity of the extension 30 serves as a stop to limit outward sliding movement of the markers 29 in the slideway. The arrangement is such that the outermost marker in the slideway 115 is engaged and stopped (see Fig. 6) by the flange 31. The last-mentioned marker may subsequently drop, by gravity, from the dispenser only when the marker is raised by a lifting finger 34 relatively to the slideway and the flange 31 thereon. When the last-mentioned marker is, lifted by the finger 34 from the position of Fig, 6 to the position of Fig. 7, the marker may slide over the flange 31 (see Fig. and drop by gravity on the game board While the next following marker is stopped and held in the slideway 15 by engagement of the finger 34' with said following marker.

Turning now to the details of the. lifting finger 34, the finger 34 is generally of strip form and throughout the greater part of the length thereof is of a width approximating that of the slideway 15. The finger 34 ex.- tends into the recess 18 formed in the web 17 and at the inner end thereof is secured to the top of the slideway 15 by 'welding or other suitable means, the finger 34 normally being free of engagement with the web 17. At the other end thereof, the sides of the finger 34 converge toward one another to provide a tip and the extremity 36 of the tip is bent downwardly, as best shown in Fig. 3. The aforementioned converging sides of the finger 34 extend outwardly beyond the distal end of the slideway 15, the arrangement being such that the extremity 36 of the tip is spaced outwardly a distance from the upwardly extending flange 31 at the distal end of the slideway 15. The finger 34 is thickened, as at 37, in the area of the flange 31 (see Fig. 3) and in this area the finger 34 is provided with depending sides 37"- 'which closely overlie the sides 30 of the tongue 30, the sides 37 of the finger having clearance with the tongue 30. The sides 37 of the finger 34 are provided with opposing grooves 38 forming a track for the markers 29 and providing upwardly facing shoulders 39 at opposite sides of the tongue 30 which, when the tip of the finger 34 is raised relatively to the slideway 1 5-, engage and lift the outermost marker in the slideway 15 over the flange 31 so that the same may drop out of the dispenser through the track formed by the grooves: 38. As best shown in Fig. 8, the shoulders 39 are located closelyadjacent the respective sides of the tongue 30 and the tongue is of a width less than the diameterof the markers 29 so that the markers extend over the sides 30 of the tongue and onto the shoulders 39-. At their lower extremities the sides 37* of the finger 34 are interconnected by a part 40 underlying the slid'e way 15, the part 40 being rigid with the sides 37 and serving to brace the same.

When the finger 34 is in the normal position thereof- (see Fig. 6)- the cross-member or-part- 40 is spaced a distance below the bottom of the tongue 30 and the thickened part 37 of the finger rests on top of the flange 31. When the finger is in the last-mentioned position the outermost marker in the slideway 15 is held captive in the dispenser through the cooperation of the flange 31 with the thickened part 37 of the finger. While the finger 34 is sufliciently flexible to bend upwardly to the extent necessary to lift a marker over the stop flange 31, the finger is sufficiently rigid and spring-like to normally maintain the last-mentioned position thereof. It maybe noted that the inner fixed extremity of the finger 34 is located a distance inwardly from the upper sloping sur face 32 of the slideway. The finger 34 is offset, as at 41, in the region of the sloping surface 32 of the slide way to provide a forward or outer portion of'the finger which is substantially flush with the top of the slideway 15 (see Fig. 3) when the finger is in the normal position thereof. 'Iherear or innermost portions of the side walls 37 of the finger are of a greater height (Fig; 5) than the forward or outer portions, of these wallsand the cross member 40'- extendsv between the side walls 37 at their innermost ends, the. cross member 40 extending inwardly beyond the side walls 37 and being shaped as indicated in Figs. 5 and 8.

From the foregoing it will be understood that to discharge game markers from the dispenser the dispenser is held in the hand in the manner indicated in Fig. 1 with the body in an elevated position and the tip in a lower position so that the slideway between the tip and the body is inclined toward the game board. When the dispenser is held in this manner it may be gently agitated by shaking it from side to side so that disks in, the hopper may drop off the plate 28 and feed by gravity to the throat of the slideway 15 and then fill the slideway. When the slideway is made. of transparent or semitransparent plastic material the player may know ata glance when the slideway is full. The markers 29 are discharged from the dispenser by pressing the tip downwardly against the game board in a maunertov efiect upward lifting movement of the tip relatively to the distal end of the slideway 15. This movement of the outer end of the finger 34 eifects lifting of the outermost marker 29 above the flange 31 sothat the last-mentioned marker may slide out of the dispenser on the shoulders 39 and drop by gravity on the game board. During thismovement'of the tip the next following marker is prevented from being discharged by engagement of the latter with the rear extremities of the sides 37- below the grooves 38, as shown in Fig. 5. When the finger 34 is in the position of Fig. 5 the last-mentioned extremities of the sides 37- are spaced forwardly from the top of the slideway 15 a distance less than the diameter of a single marker, the distance being approximately one-half the diameter of the marker. This facilitates holding said following marker in the slideway 15 as the marker is closely confined between the top and bottom of the slideway, and, therefore, may not tip upwardly. Before the marker is discharged from the dispenser the tip must first be returned to the normal or rest position thereof. The tip must be in the normal position thereof in order for the marker to slide onto the shoulders 39. It will be understood that when and as downward pressure of the tip on the game board is released or terminated the tip springs from the position of Fig. 5 to the normal position thereof, shown in Fig. 3.

The distal end of the fixed finger 19 is engageable by the tip of the dispenser to limit movement of the latter in an opening or dispensing direction, as shown in Fig. 5. This inhibits breaking of the tip. It may also be noted that the depending outer extremity 36 of the tip serves as an abutment to limit outward falling movement of a marker as it is discharged from the dispenser. This facilitates exact placement of a marker on a game board.

In accordance with the foregoing disclosure, there is provided a dispenser which is very easy to load and which has a large capacity. There is also provided a dispenser which is fast and 'very reliable in operation and which dispenses articles one at a time. The dispenser requires very little finger pressure on the part of hte user and is not tiring to operate. Furthermore, as the tip may be formed of transparent plastic material, the dispenser does not obscure from the players view the square on which the marker is to be placed as the dispenser is moved to the dispensing position over the square. Still further, the dispenser is of simplified and rugged construction and is very economical to produce.

While only one form of the dispenser has been illustrated and described by way of example, it will be understood that the dispenser is susceptible of various modifications and changes in details without departing from the principles of the invention and the scope of the claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a dispenser for small objects of disk form, an upwardly extending body forming a receptacle for the disks and for support in the hand of the user, the body having laterally extending means forming a slideway for the disks and including a stop fixed to the slideway and limiting outward sliding movement of the disks one behind another in the slideway, and disk-discharging means for depositing the disks one at a time on a disk-receiving surface, the last-mentioned means being supported from the slideway and comprising a lifting finger overlying the outer end of the slideway, the finger extending beyond the outer end of the slideway and the stop and being operative to discharge the outermost disk when pressed downwardly on the disk-receiving surface.

2. In a dispenser for small objects of disk form, a hopper body for support in the hand of the user having a bottom and a side wall structure, said body forming a receptacle for the disks disposed at random in the latter, means extending laterally from the body at the bottom and forming a slideway for the disks one behind another, said means comprising a stop fixed to the slideway and limiting outward sliding movement of the disks one behind another in the slideway, and a second means supported from the slideway and cooperating with the first-named means to lift the disks over the stop one at a time and deposit them on a disk-receiving surface, said second means comprising a lifting finger overlying the outer end of the slideway, the finger extending beyond the outer end of the slideway and the stop and being operative to discharge the outermost disk when pressed downwardly on the disk-receiving surface.

3. In a dispenser for small objects of disk form, a hopper body for support in the hand of the user having a bottom and a side wall structure, said body forming a receptacle for the disks disposed at random in the latter, an elongate member of flattened tubular form extending laterally from the body at the bottom and forming a slideway for the disks one behind the other, a Web of elongate form vertically arranged having one end fixed to said side Wall structure and extending longitudinally of the slideway, said web having a portion thereof fixed to the top of the slideway adjacent said body and having a free projecting end spaced above and extending beyond the distal end of the slideway, and means supported on the slideway to lift the disks out of the distal end of the slideway one at a time and deposit them on a disk-receiving surface, said means comprising a lifting finger extending outwardly from the distal end of the slideway and having a tip movable upwardly relative to said end of the slideway, the finger extending below and beyond the projecting end of the web and normally being spaced from the latter, and said lifting finger being operative to discharge the outermost disk when pressed downwardly on a disk-receiving surface, said projecting end of the web being engageable with said finger to limit lifting movement of the latter.

4. In a dispenser for small objects of disk form, a hopper body for support in the hand of the user having a bottom and a side wall structure, said body forming a receptacle for the disks disposed at random in the latter, means extending laterally from the body at the bottom and forming a slideway for the disks one behind another, the slideway having a discharge end and a throat at the other end, said hopper bottom having a series of upright partitions formed on the upper surface thereof at each side of the longitudinal median plane of the slideway, the partitions being of a height only slightly in excess of the thickness of a disk, and the partitions of each series being spaced apart and inclined toward said throat forming with one another ways for the disks, each way being of a width only slightly in excess of the disk diameter, one series of partitions being spaced from the other to provide therebetween a passageway extending toward the throat, the partitions of one series being in staggered relation to the partitions of the other series, and a plate member extending parallel to the bottom of the hopper body over the inner ends of the ways and leaving exposed the outer end portions of the ways, the plate member extending over said passageway extending toward the throat, the plate member being fixedly supported in the body to extend closely over the tops of the partitions so that the disks may not enter said passage in piggyback relation to one another and jam in the area of the throat.

5. In a dispenser for small objects of disk form, a slideway for the disks one behind another, the slideway having a tongue at the discharge end forming an extension of the bottom of the slideway, the tongue being narrower than the diameter of the disks and having at the distal end thereof an upwardly extending flange serving as a disk stop, a spring-like lifting finger over the tongue having the distal end thereof extending beyond the flange for engagement with a disk-receiving surface, the other end of the finger being in fixed relation to the slideway, the finger having intermediate its ends depending sides closely overlying the sides of the tongue, the sides being shouldered to provide lifting surfaces for lifting a .disklover said .stop ,flange when the distal end 1,685,183 Wilhelm 'SeptfZS, 1928 of the springflike .finger is pressed downwardly on vthe 1,800,459 -Maclean -'A pr. 114, 1931 disk-receiving surface. 1,807,942 Stimpson June 2, 1931 11,897,200 Klett Feb. 14, .1933

References Cited in the. file ofitliispatent 5 2 3 Gofa S p 1941 UNITED STATES iPATE/NTS FOREIGN PATENTS 135,329 Glidden Jan. 28, 1873 296,750 Great Britain '"S cpt. 7, 1928 1,521,819 Lenz Jan. "6, 1925 486,873 France Feb. 22, 1918 

